ˌfirst-ˈhand (also first‧hand) /ˌfɜːstˈhænd $ ˌfɜːrst-/ adjective [only before noun]
first-hand experience/knowledge/account etc experience etc that has been learned or gained by doing something yourself or by talking to someone yourself ⇒ second-hand:
journalists with first-hand experience of working in war zones
—first-hand adverb:
experience gained first-hand
⇒ (at) first hand at first¹(8)

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

first hand
if you experience something first hand, you experience it yourself.
Many reporters based in the capital are experiencing the war first hand.

It is difficult to appreciate the scale of the problem without seeing the effects of the famine at first hand.

[TahlilGaran] English Idioms Dictionary ▲

first-hand
first hand - if you experience something first hand, you experience it yourself.
I've been a teacher for a long time, and have first-hand experience of the way these students behave.
(always before noun)

[TahlilGaran] English Idioms Dictionary ▲

first hand
to see/experience/learn about something by direct personal experience
We learned about the car accident first hand when we were driving down the highway.

[TahlilGaran] English Idioms Dictionary ▲